“SO WE HAVE TO STAND UP”: UK’S CORBYN TO RUN AS AN INDEPENDENT IN UPCOMING GENERAL ELECTION

Fri 24 May 2024:

Former Labour Party leader Jeremy Corbyn has announced he will run as an independent candidate in the upcoming UK general election on July 4, posing a potential challenge for Labour in his long-held north London seat. Corbyn, who has represented Islington North for over four decades, stated he aims to be “an independent voice for equality, democracy, and peace.”

“I want our political parties to be democratic, but members of Islington North Labour have been denied the right to choose a candidate,” Corbyn said in a video announcing his plan.

I am standing as an independent candidate for the people of Islington North.

As your MP, I will continue to be an independent voice for equality, democracy and peace.

Please join our campaign at https://t.co/dRySocs48C. Let’s prove that when we come together, we can win. pic.twitter.com/rkyf5yakod

— Jeremy Corbyn (@jeremycorbyn) May 24, 2024

“So we have to stand up. We have to stand up and say, we’re not taking this anymore. We will assert our rights. That’s why I’m standing to be an independent candidate for the people of Islington North.”

Labour’s decision to exclude the 74-year-old from their shortlist for the seat prompted his move to run independently. Corbyn was suspended from Labour in 2020 after a report criticized the handling of anti-Semitism complaints during his leadership. He led Labour in the 2019 election and has been an MP for Islington North since 1983.

Corbyn, known for his criticism of Israel’s policies towards Palestine, acknowledged some of the findings from the report during his tenure, admitting Jewish Labour members and the wider community deserved better handling of the issue, though he disputed some conclusions.

An Al Jazeera investigation suggested senior Labour officials had previously attempted to undermine Corbyn and stifle debate on Israel’s actions against Palestinians.

Following the October 7 attack by Hamas on Israel and Israel’s subsequent offensive on Gaza, which resulted in over 35,000 Palestinian deaths, Corbyn criticized Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and the Israeli government’s policies. In November, he called on the International Criminal Court to investigate what he termed as “genocide” in Gaza.

Political leaders in the UK began a six-week campaign period on Thursday, ahead of the July 4 vote. A recent Survation poll showed Labour at 48 points, their highest since November 2022, and 21 points ahead of the Conservatives at 27 points. The poll results align with Labour’s consistent lead in 2023 and into this year, according to various surveys.

SOURCE: INDEPENDENT PRESS AND NEWS AGENCIES

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